Tuesday, August 31, 2004

WHOOSE CASH? OUR CASH

So Bart, Matt and I headed up to Sotheby’s Auction house for the Defend Johnny Cash rally. At first it looked as if it was gonna be a washout but Bart and I started singing along with the other early arrivals and after the 4th version of I walk the Line squatters, gawkers, record store clerks, punks, hippies, professional protesters all started streaming in. Before I knew it the protesters were congregating on all the corners quicker than the police could build up the Free Speech Zones.

A little history: Johnny Cash was a lot of things including drug addict, father, band leader, folk singer, Christian, arsonist, good husband, loyal friend, and the list goes on, but partisan he was not. He never, even during the polarized 1960's when it was so easy to be in the silent/moral majority, declared anything other than compassion and justice to his fellow man and women. He sang with Bob Dylan, played to prisons, spoke frankly about the Vietnam War, and professed his faith with the conviction of a believer. I am sure he had friendships and loyalties across the political spectrum and could be painted conservative on some issues, but he no doubt had the progressive heart that has been the real American quality that has outshone our flaws.

The Tennessee delegation was hosting a party at Sotheby’s where later in September some of his stuff will be auctioned. This was nothing more than a sneak peek at the goods by greedy republicans. Another case, like so much of this ghoulish convention, seeks to use the voiceless dead to tell their tales. Maybe it kinda stupid to take a stand at this kind of event, except that music inspires people and the RNC so willingly co-opts Americana icons and heartland culture, it felt good to show up and declare one for "our side."

And when you see "their side" like Bart, Matt and I did in their WASPY clothes and hairdos I feel the cultural divide than makes defending Johnny Cash a righteous act. There has been some discussion on Listmaker about what good demonstrations do, and by and large it was a lot of yelling and emotion, but damn it it did feel good to scream myself into a wicked headache and get something out and have an audience for it. We booed the delegates and chanted and sang and basically ruined their party. There was like a revolving door as the tennesseans arrived, realized the bad vibe from the smelly crowd and began getting back on the class based rides out of there (Limos/Black SUVS/Sedans/town cars/cabs and lastly buses) The party lasted about and hour and a quarter, mostly with time taken up by lining up rides out. For most of the time Matt, Bart and I were right up front against the metal gates with 4 rows of helmeted cops stared us down. Look for us in the news and on the web.

HIGLIGHTS AND CELEBRITY SIGHTINGS:

Jello Biafra:
The ex Dead Kennedy singer and professional rabble-rouser was in the crowd long enough to do 3 interviews and split. He really has gotten pudgy and grey.

Alphonse D'mato: Former New York senator. I tried to start an ALLLLLLPHONNNSE chant but maybe that was a little to pre-911 for this bunch.

Fred Thompson: Former actor and Tenn Republican Senator who has recently returned to acting by joining the cast of Law & Order. My heckle for him was: HOLLYWOOD ELITIST, HOLLYWOOD ELITIST.

George Allen: Former Virginia Governor (I was served him mini beef Wellington puffs at a VA republican function in Richmond during my days as a banquet temp) and current VA Senator. He also is the son of former Redskins coach George Allen SR. and brother of Tampa Bay Bucs GM Bruce Allen. Not to original, but I yelled "Fuck You George Allen, your no George senior!!!!!" It got a good response from him as he genuinely enjoyed being recognized.

Paul Tagliabue: NFL Commissioner. Not sure why he was there and he got there way late, maybe he was their on other business, but I still let him have it. Best heckle: "Paul Tagliabue? Is nothing sacred!!!” Not great but I love football.......

I also think I saw former Mass Governor and loser to Kerry in Mass Senate race William Weld. But I didn’t get to see Bill Frisk or former Tenn Gov Lamar Alexander. I actually walked Lamar's daughter down the aisle in a friends wedding. He also has been a luke warm supporter of gay rights due to my friends Mom's socialite politicking. I would have given him a pass.

SOME NON-CELEBRITY HECKLES I LANDED:


Someone get that junior event planner an apple martini (she was in major damage control as the we were making her job a nightmare. She cracked a smile on that one.)

Oh my god, look at that hair! Somewhere in Iraq a soldier is missing his helmet (This was some HUGE HAIR on this broad. She is looked like she was going to cry...)

How can a self respecting Sigma Chi leave an open bar early. (This was to some gaggle of twentysomethings who stayed for like 2 minutes)

Matt Army got a great chant of TROPHY WIFE AND A FAT HUSBAND...that was very popular with us and even got some stone faced cops to crack gas faces.

COMMON CHANTS:

NO RNC

RNC GO HOME

WELCOME TO NY NOW GET THE FUCK OUT

HEY HEY HOO THE GOP HAS GOT TO GO

WHOOSE CASH? OUR CASH!

SHAME SHAME SHAME

GRAVEROBBERS

YOUR UGLY AND MEAN THE GOP IS GOING DOWN IN A RING OF FIRE

BOOOOOOOOOOOOO

you get the point

whats on tomorrow’s schedule?

Yours in visceral release,
Brother Larry







OLYMPICS OVER... sniffle....

Phew the Olympics are over without major incident. I enjoyed them immensley as always. Greece pulled it out lazy last minute style. I had to buy my boss Stu lunch b/c of USA BB. By the way they are still my dawgs and the level of venom towards them is very thinly vieled rascism plain and simple. There are plenty of BB reasons they lost, but many focus on them as "uppity rich niggers"

RNC UPDATE

So tommorow is my best day to do some protesting. And yes maybe I am trying to schedule it bit but the rest of my week is spent trying to learn how to help Americas youth so get off my back. I have a descion to make. There are two protests I want to go to Tuesday, but both of them are at 4pm. I am putting it out for a vote AND/OR an invitation to join me here are the details:

DEFEND JOHNNY CASH: The Tennesse Republican delegates are hosting a tribute to Johnny Cash, which is a travesty. This will be a wild, musical protest. They will be singing Johnny Cash songs and lots of costumes ect. Good protest for us musical minded. The protest will be at Sotheby's Auction House on York Avenue and 71st Street at 4pm. Click here for website.

FOX NEWS "SHUT-UP-A-THON": This will be people outside FOX NEWS STUDIOS screaming Shut Up and other friendly sayings at this propaganda service. 1211 Ave. of Americas (btwn. 47th & 48th). Sponsered by CODEPINK, Houston Global Awareness, Ronald Reagan Home for the Criminally Insane, The Tejas Bloc, and more. Maybe Robert Greenwald will be there. This one might be more serious and we might get on TV! Click here for press release.

Looks like Bart and Matt Army will be with me. There vote is the Johnny Cash protest. I wanna see who else wants in and get a vote on what we should do. I would like to formulate a plan before 1:30. Vote and organize on the comments section or email me at chrislarry@nyc.rr.com.

Yours in Drunken Ira Hayes,
LTL

Thursday, August 19, 2004

SWIFT BOAT GATE

As a son of a Vietnam vetern who has lived with the scars of Vietnam on my family my entire life I am sickened by this swift boat controversy. I just read a new article in the Wshington Post that has me literally shaking and combined with the extra large ice coffe I downed while watching my USA BB Dawgs defeat the aussies at 730 AM turning my bowls like a washing machine.

I can't even formulate the obvious counter attacks. The fact that this has stuck with the american people make me disgusted to be an American. That is strong talk from me especially during the Olympics which makes me into a complete patriotic nut job.

I want our country back. I want some civility, class, honesty, kindness, forgiveness, SOME MOTHER FUCKING CHRISTIAN BEHAVIOR. I dont count my self on the Christioan team, and at best a closet pagen, but where has the christian values gone in this country. We have become an ethical Sodom & Gamora with the most vocal "christians" embracing EVIL (yes he said...EVIL...) like a free handjob.

Kerry you need to take it strong to the hole, or look like a wuss. AND John McCain will you PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE be a man and denounce Bush for the rich little pussy bitch that he is and back Kerry. Enough with the "party of Teddy Roosevelt" crap turn your back on the Republicans. Bush already used this tactic on your service record and your adoption of a little "black baby" AND your wife's pill problem during the 2000 primaries. Your gonna support that over a man you fought side by side with in the Senate to clear up the POW/MIA issue. When are you gonna be a MAN/WOMEN/HUMAN BEING????????????????????????

Here email McCain and call him out for the shill he really is:
http://mccain.senate.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=Contact.Home

Here is some contact info for Swift Boat veterans for THE DEATH OF TRUTH. Spam them, send them viruses, anything.....

Contact Swift veterans at Latch@SwiftVets.com

Send web site questions to Admin@SwiftVets.com

For media inquiries, use Media@SwiftVets.com


Yours in LT,
Chris Lawrence

Wednesday, August 18, 2004

The Olympics Kick Ass!!!!! Negoids BE GONE!!!!!!

Youthlarge beat me to the wall with her Olympic entry. Thanks for the motivation!

I still owe a large treatise on the Little Steven International Garage Underground festival last Saturday. I had a Biff Bang Blast and lots of thoughts and observations as well as some tmobile on the scene reports to come soon (ish..). Let me say this The Dictaors killed, The New York Dolls was a once in a lifetime event, and Big Ups to Iggy Stooge who rocks it at almost 60. If you like the Strokes I can't like you. Like I said more later stay tuned.....

Back to the Olympics:

I love this shit. Its like a holiday that even makes the other humdrum bullshit in life seem manageable. I am so sick of anti-Olympic stories/people/comments/ whatever. Bush should be neutered for politicizing it. Have you seen that commercial for him that celebrates the Iraq and Afghan teams???? That’s some big onions he's got. The republicans are masters of cheapening anything that is truly emotional in a golly gee I love the USA way. I will admit when I watched the Iraqi team walk in during opening ceremonies I got choked up and I am mos def rooting for them in soccer.

In my further attempt to be positive let me throw out words of support to the new wave free Triple Cast coverage by the NBC Cable family. Since I work from home often I can watch day coverageon MSNBC, CNBC, Bravo, USA AND NBC. They have really done a great job at bringing events, sometimes live, in their entirety. I have watched full Basket Ball (commercial free!!) games, Volley ball matches. soccer and a shitload of Boxing...

THE SWEET SCIENCE

CNBC from 5-8 est shows nothing but Boxing. I love Olympic/amateur boxing and the last 15 years NBC has phased it out because of its declining popularity. The pro game is so sickened that it helped kill armature boxing. Remember the Olympics gave us Cassius Clay, George Foreman, Sugar Ray Leonard, The Hearns Brothers, Evander Hollyfield, Riddick Bowe, Roy Jones Jr, and Oscar De Hoya just to name some obvious ones. But on CNBC you get bout after glorious bout, and the US team is very competitive despite suffering our first loss today when 17-year-old high school junior Rau'Sheed Warren got a tough first round draw. But one good reason to check out the Sweet Science is NBC commentator Tony Atlas. This Stanen Island native and boxing expert is both funny to laugh at and with and breaks the matches down so that a few bouts in your knowledgeable about the sweet science on a cerebral level.

STU IS ANNOYING, USA BB MUST WIN

I have a lunch bet on whether A.I. and his dawgs can win a gold medal with my boss Stu. I bet on my country and our game. I know the world has caught up, USA BB picked the team like they were signing autographs at the mall rather than competing for national pride and the hip hop street nature of BB has its "limitations" BUT I am rooting for these guys like a muthafucka. This team has single-handedly taken the given of USA gold in BB and created an underdog story for themselves. The game against Greece was high drama and I watched every pass, shot and a few dunks. I will tell you this: Carmelo Anthony is a PUNK BITCH. Take that normal teen, bend your fuckin bill!!!!! Long Live King James. If TEAM STREETBALL doesn’t gut this out I may strangle my boss, please guys don’t let me down I don’t want to watch the NFL from jail with Jamal Lewis.


Yours in Athena,
LTL

Tuesday, August 03, 2004

Me and Laura Bush Love the Oysters at the Mercer Kitchen

So I am standing outside the Mercer Kitchen in SOHO and just watched First Prig Laura Bush leave her lunch and get into a secret service escalade. Gotta say, very surreal. Thank god I have the Sidekick so I could instantly Blog on this occurance. She was wearing a red blazer and was surrounded by security. It looked as if she was with one of her party girl daughters. The blond one.

One funny moment was when one of the secret service stopped an old school NYC lefty with a no bush button on her floppy hat. He made a joke with her and let her go. I don't even think she knew what was going on and she wandered past literally seconds before The First Prig came out.
As Laura exited the restuarnt their were throngs of people. Only in NYC can u gather this many gawkers. I was instantly sucked in. At first I was hoping new Met wife Anna Benson was enjoying the fruits of her new city, but when one onlooker said it was LB I knew I had to sit around and wait for the show.

I wonder if this lower manhattan lunch trip was a message to go about our lives here in ORANGE TERROR ALERT NYC. And if Bush and his cronies we were really so worried about attacks do you think she would be lunching here at the intersection of Mercer and Prince? Aparently she was here to thank everyone for coming to work with the THREAT. Like these clockpunchers have a choice! Was yesterday any more dangerous than any day post 9/11???? Was her well orchestrared visit just part of the fear election stradegy of the last 72 hours? I will be happy to report that only one person of about 75 clapped as she walked ito her black SUV.

After 9/11 I was pretty hawkish on terrorists and ready to buy into some of this crusades like mentallity. Which explains why I am so much more pissed off now because Bush & Co. have turned all of this fear, security, terrorism into such a farce that I can't even in good faith be anything less than a conspiracy theorist nutball even though I am SURE terrorism will strike again. This terrorism as campaign stradegy is high treason and when/if the truth ever comes out heads should bounce down Pannsalvania Ave like basketballs. The last few days have run so smoothly for Republicans with the terror imagery, the army of pundits questioning peoples patriotism and the skewed baby bounce poll numbers that it reads like a sequel to Wag the Dog. I also believe that this is all a run up to the RNC convention as they are making sure Bloomberg has the goon squads ready to bust protestor heads and spark riots to blacken the anti Bush movement. And you know that if NYC makes the rebublicans look bad they will punish us by withholding federal funds. That's why Bloomberg is bieng such a wuss. Dark days indeed. Here is a good conversation between Norman Mailer, the original angry young man, and his son about the impending riots.

Yours in Terreze Hienz Kerry
LTL

JOE GIBBS BABY OFFICIALLY KICKS OF FOOTBALL SEASON

...and not a minute to soon. I need Football like fiend. No apologies. Joe Gibbs Baby is now active and talking Redskins/Footbal and Fantasy Football...

JIM SAYS IT BETTER

Whiskey Drinker has a great new blog decrying terror alerts and politics. He is planning his ex-patriotism now. I do like New Zealand. I want to live in Rivendale but I hear the rents are high. I wanted to talk about this subject as well but WDJ nails it so why bother!

DIDN'T HE SAY HE WAS GOING TO TO AN ALBUM REVIEW A WEEK?

...I did didn't I...well I still have a 5 days left this week.


Yours in Fear,
LTL